Mrs Marian’s anger never lasted quite as long as she threatened it would.
By the time Black returned to his room, rubbing an ear still red from being twisted, his arms were full of the cakes she had saved for him.
He piled them on the bed, then checked the door and windows.
Once he was sure everything was locked and no one would interrupt him, he pulled up a battered chair and sat down.
He opened the system’s storage space without so much as another glance at the cakes.
Sweet things were all very well.
But right now, what could possibly compete with opening chests?
He counted them.
Five in total: one Bronze Chest, one Silver Chest and two Gold Chests.
And, most importantly, one Supreme Chest.
The highest tier the system offered.
He hadn’t expected to get one so soon.
After a moment’s consideration, he decided to start at the bottom and work his way up.
The best could wait until last.
‘System, open the Bronze Chest first.’
[Opening Bronze Chest.]
[Intermediate Cooking Mastery acquired.]
‘Cooking.
Hmm.’
He was beginning to understand how the rewards worked.
This chest had come from Mrs Marian, who was an excellent cook.
Presumably, that increased the likelihood of receiving a cooking-related skill.
‘So if there’s something particular I want to learn, perhaps I should find someone who’s good at it and get a few chests out of them.’
His eyes brightened.
If you wanted a particular prize, it helped to draw from the right pool.
[Applying Intermediate Cooking Mastery.]
[Application complete.]
A wealth of cooking techniques settled into his mind.
More than that, his hands felt different.
He was certain that, given a kitchen knife, he could carve a flower out of a block of tofu.
The knowledge came with the dexterity to use it.
‘Brilliant.’
It might only be an intermediate skill, and it had nothing to do with magic, but he had wanted this for a long time.
He loved good food.
Unfortunately, his previous efforts in the kitchen had been disastrous.
He had once pestered Mrs Marian into teaching him.
She had endured an hour before throwing him out.
Well, that wouldn’t be a problem any more.
After savouring his success for a moment, Black opened a small cake box and took a bite.
‘Not quite right.
A little more honey would make all the difference.’
He paused.
That assessment had come naturally.
With Intermediate Cooking Mastery, he could now taste what another cook had done well—and where they had gone wrong.
At the very least, his own skills now comfortably exceeded those of the baker at the cake shop.
Yet surely someone running a cake shop in London had to know what they were doing.
The baker ought to be reasonably accomplished.
Which meant an intermediate skill was rather better than Black had assumed.
It seemed to put him well ahead of an ordinary professional.
By that measure, the system might classify the skills of a typical trained professional as only basic mastery.
Black reconsidered his opinion of Bronze Chests.
Even the lowest tier could give him an advantage most people would struggle to acquire.
That made the remaining rewards all the more enticing.
‘System, open the Silver Chest.’
There was only one.
But it had come from Dumbledore.
Would it contain a skill or aptitude connected to one of his specialities?
Black waited eagerly.
[Opening Silver Chest.]
[Advanced Aptitude for Alchemy acquired.]
‘Alchemy?’
He scratched his head.
Dumbledore was an accomplished alchemist.
Perhaps not on Nicolas Flamel’s level, but he had achieved a great deal in the field.
So the reward made sense. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
It was an excellent aptitude to have, too.
He simply couldn’t do much with it yet.
He had barely begun to enter the magical world, let alone study alchemy.
Still, there was no reason to be discouraged.
Perhaps this talent would eventually give him a way to approach Nicolas Flamel himself.
And once he met the legendary alchemist, there might be opportunities to earn a few chests.
Black filed the idea away.
Then he turned his attention to the two Gold Chests.
Now for the really promising part.
They looked identical.
He couldn’t tell which had come from Hermione and which from Dumbledore.
The contents might give him a clue.
‘System, open a Gold Chest.’
[Opening Gold Chest.]
[Exceptional Aptitude for Runes acquired.]
‘Runes?’
He knew Hogwarts offered Study of Ancient Runes as an elective from third year.
As far as he remembered, it wasn’t a particularly exciting subject.
Mostly theory, with students learning to translate old documents written in runic script.
Rather like studying inscriptions in a long-dead language.
‘That’s a bit limited, isn’t it?’
He frowned.
Then he reconsidered.
Perhaps he was dismissing it too quickly.
The runes of European legend were more than an old writing system.
In those stories, the symbols themselves held magical power.
‘Writing that carries magic…’
He considered the possibilities.
‘Could I inscribe runes on parchment and use the pieces as paper talismans?’
Already, he could picture it.